The Brothers Bloom (Rian Johnson, 2008): USA

Reviewed by Cora Hubbert. Viewed at the AFI Filmfest, Arclight Hollywood, CA.

The second film from director Rian Johnson is a stark contrast from his first, Brick, which has been categorized as film noir.  The Brothers Bloom is an extremely humorous con-man caper with genuinely lovable characters that is reminiscent of screwball comedy from the 1930s and 40s.  The story is entertaining throughout and ends well, with a bittersweet twist that makes for a conclusion that isn’t too unrealistically happy.

It follows the tale of the Brothers Bloom, a pair that grew up moving frequently between different foster homes, and consequently have always felt that all they have is each other.  As kids they learned the delicate art of conning in order to survive the pains of their unfortunate childhood and line their pockets; now they are the worlds greatest con men. As they get older, the younger brother Bloom (Adrien Brody, The Pianist, Darjeeling Limited) grows weary of his life of lies and wants to get out of the business completely, but his bro Stephen (Mark Ruffalo, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) convinces him to do one last project. So the two embark upon their last great escapade, the target of which is a very eccentric young heiress named Penelope, played by Rachel Weisz (The Constant Gardener, The Mummy). The brothers are accompanied by BangBang, who has only one line throughout the entire film but nonetheless creates a memorable character as their mysterious explosive-happy sidekick, played flawlessly by Rinko Kikuchi (Babel).  So the story unfolds as Penelope proves to be a bit more than the brothers expected, and goes about turning their carefully written lives upside down.

The film was shot primarily in Eastern Europe and employed sets from the natural countryside and existing buildings.  The clothing that the actors wore gave the film a timeless feeling, seeming to tell the audience that although it might have been set in modern times, the story was one for any era. The director once again teamed up with composer Nathan Johnson for the musical score, which I loved.  The soundtrack also includes songs from Cat Stevens (in a scene the director has admitted to being a deliberate nod to Harold and Maude).  The cast includes two of my personal favorite actors, Weisz- who is adorable as Penelope, and Brody- who is equally charming in his depressed sort of way, and they perform beautifully as always. Rinko Kikuchi really steals the show however, with the perfect portrayal of such a cleverly cool character. I really loved every second of this movie and I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys a quirky crime comedy/romance story. The Brothers Bloom is witty and a lot of fun.